Apart from using our eyes to see and our ears to hear, we regularly
and effortlessly perform a number of complex perceptual operations
that cannot be explained in terms of the five senses taken
individually. Such operations include, for example, perceiving that
the same object is white and sweet, noticing the difference between
white and sweet, or knowing that one's senses are active. Observing
that lower animals must be able to perform such operations, and being
unprepared to ascribe any share in rationality to them, Aristotle
explained such operations with reference to a higher-order perceptual
capacity which unites and monitors the five senses. This capacity is
known as the 'common sense' or sensus communis. Unfortunately,
Aristotle provides only scattered and opaque references to this
capacity. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that the exact nature
and functions of this capacity have been a matter of perennial
controversy. Pavel Gregoric offers an extensive and compelling
treatment of the Aristotelian conception of the common sense, which
has become part and parcel of Western psychological theories from
antiquity through to the Middle Ages, and well into the early modern
period. Aristotle on the Common Sense begins with an introduction to
Aristotle's theory of perception and sets up a conceptual framework
for the interpretation of textual evidence. In addition to analysing
those passages which make explicit mention of the common sense, and
drawing out the implications for Aristotle's terminology, Gregoric
provides a detailed examination of each function of this Aristotelian
faculty.
Les mer
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9780191608490
Publisert
2020
Utgiver
Oxford University Press Academic UK
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter